Erin Moran And 2 Perfect Pop Albums (And 16 Years In Between)

Find of the year - 2 superb albums, Been Around (2020) and A Girl Called Eddy (2004) – by a Girl Called Eddy

Erin Moran, better known by her stage name, A Girl Called Eddy, is an American soul pop singer / songwriter born in Neptune, New Jersey, USA and currently living in England

Every song on both albums matter – there are no passengers. I missed Moran in 2004, but her songs, so compelling and seductive, ensnared me completely this year

***

‘Everything that made her eponymous 2004 debut so instantly charming is on dazzling display once again. That soulful, chocolatey voice is still tinged with sadness, and those perfectly crafted choruses and clever middle eights still beguile. Moran's gift for storytelling is on full parade here, with devastatingly honest lyrics that paint scenes so vivid you can feel the heartache rise from the page. Sixteen years later, and the lush orchestration has been scaled back in favour of flashy bursts of brass, introspective piano passages, jangly guitar riffs, and tightly woven vocal harmonies. Throughout these 12’lve stunning tracks, Moran and Grammy-winning producer Daniel Tashian of the Silver Seas dabble in a variety of disparate moods and textures, tipping their hats to legendary artists like Tom Waits, Van Morrison, Steely Dan, and Laura Nyro, without ever seeming derivative’ (PopMatters)

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